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Rice, Casserole of

A baked rice casserole with ham, broth, and pastry crust.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 7 ingredients
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Why it works: Ham and bread are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,536 recipes. Both carry 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline, which smells popcorn, roasted. The science ↓

Rice, Casserole of

Ingredients

Directions

The book gives no oven temperature. The 400°F in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.

Prepare the rice

  1. Rinse the rice in lukewarm water, then in cold water, and drain well.

  2. In a stewpan, combine the rice with fat and broth.

  3. Stir in diced ham and salt.

  4. Cook over low heat, stirring frequently until the rice is tender and has absorbed the broth.

  5. Strain the rice through a colander and mix with a wooden spoon.

Shape the casserole

  1. Grease a mold with the fat from the rice.

  2. Fill the mold with rice, placing a piece of bread in the center.

  3. Press the rice down evenly and let it cool until firm.

  4. Dip the outside of the mold in boiling water to loosen.

Bake and serve

  1. Roll out the pâte brisée to fit the mold, cover the top, and make a small opening.

  2. Bake in a hot oven (400°F/200°C), basting with grease until golden brown.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Ham + breadtop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,536 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).

  2. Rice + breadtop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,259 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).

  3. Rice + hamtop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together477 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Rice
Forms the bulk of the casserole and sets firm as it cooks and cools.
Broth
Cooks the rice and adds moisture and savory flavor as it is absorbed.
Fat (pot-top)
Adds richness and helps the rice brown and release from the mold.
Pâte brisée
Forms a pastry crust that encloses the rice and browns in the oven.

The step that matters

Press the rice down evenly and let it cool until firm. Pressing removes air pockets so the rice holds together when unmolded. Cooling lets the starch set, so the casserole keeps its shape instead of crumbling.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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